Sunday, October 23, 2016

Mr. Men and Little Miss – Royal Mail First Day Cover

The newest Royal Mail First Day
Cover is dedicated to Mr. Men and Little Miss. Where did it all begin? One day,
when Adam Hargreaves was about eight years old, he asked his father Roger, “What
does a tickle look like?”

The unusual question his son had
posed provoked an amused response initially but, being a creative man with a
natural talent for drawing. Roger had a think and went on to visualise a tickle
in the shape of a small orange man with incredibly long arms. Inspired by his
creation, he drafted a short story all about him, developed some accompanying
illustrations and mocked up his words and pictures into a little book, Mr. Tickle, which he sent to all the
large UK publishers. While awaiting a reply, Roger kept busy working on several
other little books, featuring characters such as Mr. Greedy and Mr. Nosey.
Though rejected by the UK’s major publishers, Mr. Tickle would eventually find
a home with Thurman Publishing Ltd and in August 1971 the first six Roger
Hargreaves books – Mr. Tickle, Mr. Greedy, Mr. Happy, Mr. Nosey, Mr. Sneeze and
Mr. Bump - were published. They became
so successful that after three years more than a million copies had been sold.

A decade after the first ‘Mr. Men’
books were published, Roger began writing the ‘Little Miss’ stories. In 1981,
he introduced 13 new personalities to his readers, including Little Miss Bossy.

Sadly, in 1988 Roger Hargreaves
died suddenly at the age of 53. Adam, who had inherited his father’s artistic talent,
took over the family business and set about learning how to draw the Mr. Men
and Little Misses. Although it took him quite a long time to feel that he was
getting the characters right, in 2001 he illustrated and wrote the story of Mr.
Cheeky, which was later followed by six titles in 2004, including Mr. Cool and
Little Miss Bad.

The Mr. Men and Little Miss
stories have been absorbing and entertaining children across the globe for 45
years and in 2016 these colourful, eclectic characters are as popular as ever.

About Me

I have studied Theology at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, School of Theology, International Relations at the University of London (Queen Mary). My Master's Thesis was published as a book: 'The Aegean Sea Dispute Between Greece and Turkey - The Consequences for NATO and the EU'. For more information see: http://www.akakia.net/el/the-aegean-sea-dispute-between-greece-and-turkey
I have also studied Byzantine Music in Athens and I am currently undertaking a research on the “Fellowship of St. Alban and St. Sergius and its contribution towards Anglican – Orthodox Relations”, at the University of Winchester.
I also represent the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Thyateira and Great Britain at the A.E.C.A. If you wish to contact me you can email me: demetrifs1@yahoo.com